MLB: Without big-brother figure Kent, L.A. appears to be looser club, evident during its victory over San Diego.

Could the loss of Jeff Kent actually make the Dodgers better?

From a statistical standpoint, that’s a tough sell, but manager Joe Torre suggested Monday the Kent-less Dodgers might be a looser, less- stressed group, and perhaps a more successful one.

If nothing else, the Dodgers seem to be taking the loss of their cleanup hitter in stride. Without Kent, the Dodgers impressively took two weekend games from first-place Arizona, then kept the good times going Monday with a 5-2 victory over San Diego in front of 44,087 at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers won their third consecutive game but remain 2<MD+,%30,%55,%70>1/<MD-,%0,%55,%70>2games behind the Diamondbacks in the National League West.

Kent, scheduled to undergo arthroscopic knee surgery today that might end the season and career of the future Hall of Fame second baseman, is best known for two things: a strong bat and a serious – some say surly – demeanor that sometimes has led to conflicts with younger players.

Rap and salsa music blared from the Dodgers’ clubhouse before Monday’s game, and in the dugout, Torre related a story of his playing days, and how playing with his often-critical older brother, Frank, sometimes caused him stress.

The comparison to these Dodgers was obvious.

“Maybe the shadow of the big brother is not around,” Torre said of Kent’s departure. “Maybe it frees them up to do other things. I don’t know, but that’s what came to mind for me. … These guys are free spirits, but they have been a little hesitant from time to time.”

Hesitant was the last word to describe the Dodgers’ effort Monday, at least on the basepaths. The Dodgers stole three bases against Padres rookie catcher Nick Hundley, and two of them directly contributed to runs and helped make a winner of starting pitcher Greg Maddux (7-11).

With the score tied 1-1 in the second, Dodgers third baseman Casey Blake led off with a single and stole second with one out. Angel Berroa’s bloop double to center scored Blake and Maddux sharp single to right-center scored Berroa to give the Dodgers a 3-1 lead.

Blake hit a solo home run with one out in the third for a 4-1 lead as the Dodgers further eased the sting of their recent 2-8 road trip.

San Diego starter Chris Young (4-5), in his first start off the disabled list, allowed four runs in five innings.

“I think everybody understands that there are going to be little peaks and valleys as the season goes along,” Maddux said. “This just happened to be in (August). Fortunately, we didn’t lose too much ground in the standings. We’re still in it.”

If Kent, at age 40, is the Dodgers’ big brother, then 42-year-old Maddux might qualify for uncle status. In contrast to Kent, Maddux is heralded for his calm demeanor and willingness to reach out to young players, and Monday he also gave the Dodgers a strong effort on the mound.

Not that it started well. San Diego’s first three hitters hit sharp singles, the last of which, a liner to left field by Kevin Kouzmanoff, gave the Padres a 1-0 lead. The Dodgers answered in the first when Andre Ethier singled, stole second and advanced to third on Hundley’s wild throw.

One out later, James Loney singled home Ethier and the Dodgers never trailed again. After a one-out single in the second, Maddux retired 12 consecutive Padres to reach the sixth inning, at which point he left with a comfortable 4-2 lead.

“Greg was in command,” Torre said. “To me, starting pitching is such an important part of what we do. You keep things under control.”

Maddux left the game with two outs in the sixth after consecutive doubles by Adrian Gonzalez and Chase Headley cut the Dodgers’ lead to 4-2. Maddux allowed two runs on six hits and tied Roger Clemens for eighth place on the all-time list with career victory No. 354.

Maddux, acquired from the Padres on Aug. 19, came in 0-2 with a 7.32 ERA with the Dodgers.

“I just tried to stay in the game long enough so they guys could score some runs,” Maddux said.

They did, and the bullpen maintained it. Joe Beimel, Cory Wade, Hong-Chih Kuo and Jonathan Broxton combined for 3<MD+,%30,%55,%70>1/<MD-,%0,%55,%70>3 shutout innings. Broxton recorded his 11th save and, after a wobbly August, turned in his third consecutive strong outing.

“He’s not overthrowing the ball,” Torre said of Broxton. “He’s just letting the ball come out of his hand and he’s still throwing 96, 97 (miles per hour).”

Rich Hammond was a high school senior when the Rams left town in 1995, and now he's their beat writer for the Southern California News Group. A native of L.A., Rich broke in at the Daily Breeze as a college freshman and also has covered USC, the Kings, the Lakers and the Dodgers. He still loves sports and telling stories. Don't take the sarcastic tweets too seriously.

Join the Conversation

We invite you to use our commenting platform to engage in insightful conversations about issues in our community. Although we do not pre-screen comments, we reserve the right at all times to remove any information or materials that are unlawful, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene, vulgar, pornographic, profane, indecent or otherwise objectionable to us, and to disclose any information necessary to satisfy the law, regulation, or government request. We might permanently block any user who abuses these conditions.

If you see comments that you find offensive, please use the “Flag as Inappropriate” feature by hovering over the right side of the post, and pulling down on the arrow that appears. Or, contact our editors by emailing moderator@scng.com.